Filming

The Cast

Teaser

What is The Trial?

Set in the 1950's, The Trial tells the story of a young, driven, and successful woman Leigh, haunted by an abusive past, who fights to be part of a new drug trial to help her deal with her past and deliver the closure she longs for. But the Trial takes a dark turn and unleashes a past Leigh didn't expect.

Hi, I am Kirsty and I am the creator of The Trial. Born from a love of medical science and research, as well as a passion for film and acting, the 1950’s world of The Trial is the collision between the dark themes of Black Mirror and the gripping stillness of Mind Hunter. A dystopian sci-fi, exploring just how far one will go to in order to escape a cycle of trauma and abuse.

The themes of this story are personally close to my heart, as well as being a strong vessel to highlight the ideas of trauma and abuse and the lengths someone will go to pursue closure and healing. The idea that we never quite escape the tendrils of our past both fascinates and haunts me. With this film, we wanted to explore the themes of grief, distress, the depth of trauma and the cycle in which it binds its victims. Not only that, but we also want to push the boundaries of what is often seen in film today, to not only to create a visually stunning film, but to raise awareness of themes such as gaslighting and the psychology of abuse, creating a world just close enough to reality to leave a lasting impact with the audience.

Being able to create this film also has the potential to catalyse conversations about abuse and trauma, and hopefully lead to healing, as it will hopefully resonate with many. It would mean the world if we were given the opportunity to try and create change. 

The Crew

  • Viv Scanu - Cinematographer

    Viv is an award-winning cinematographer based in Sydney, Australia. As one of Australia’s premier cinematographers of Tabletop and high-speed photography, his skill set makes him one the most sought-after DOPs, both locally and internationally.

    Having begun his career assisting the most revered cinematographers on large scale feature films, Viv swiftly developed a reputation for capturing striking visuals with a cinematic aesthetic on any scale.

    Gaining accreditation in 2015 as a member of the Australian Cinematography Society, in 2016 Viv was also awarded Best Cinematographer in the 2016 Tropfest Craft Awards for the short film “Wish You Here”. In 2017 he was awarded a Silver ACS Award for the film “Out of the Shadows”, the same year he shot another feature “Shambhala”. In 2018 the feature-length multi-award-winning Documentary “Balentes” was released, filmed in Sardinia Italy, Viv was the principal Cinematographer on this project.

    With a great eye for detail and a strong passion for storytelling, Viv Scanu’s reputation ensures he is constantly working and in demand both locally and overseas.

  • Joe Morris - Editor

    International Film Editor & Post Production Supervisor with a career spanning 20 years, Joe's career in storytelling is wide-ranging, with a contemporary blend of advertising, TV, and feature film works. His wealth of experience and strong creative technical skill set has allowed him to weave seamlessly between drama, comedy, fashion, and VFX projects.

    His passion is nothing short of infectious and a swag of awards is testimony to his dedication to the editorial craft. Morris has been recognised around the globe with accolades at Cannes, The One Club, AWARD, and Ciclope and Spikes to name a few.

    For the last 3 years, Morris has been awarded the Ellie for Best Commercial Editor at the Australian Screen Editors Awards (ASE)- a feat never achieved before. He is also one of the highest nominated editors at the ASE. His work on the TEDx opening titles has been selected as a finalist, at SXSW for 3 years running and it also recently won at the One Screen Awards.

    Morris has also edited a number of successful films and documentaries including The Craft which was awarded Best Fiction Short at The One Club, and The Real Bangkok Hilton, which is both winners of the prestigious Peabody Award as well as one of BBC’s highest rating documentaries on British Television to date.

  • Steve Toulmin - Composer

    “Music is key to the play, led by the composer and sound designer Steve Toulmin”. said The Guardian.

    Steve is one of Australia’s most sought-after theatrical composers with over 100 professional productions to his name. He has worked for every major national theatre company alongside the country’s most acclaimed directors including Neil Armfield, Simon Phillips, Gale Edwards, Lee Lewis, Eamon Flack, John Bell, and, internationally, including Steven Soderbergh and Kevin Maher (Choreographer to Madonna, Justin Bieber, Britney Spears, etc). His work regularly tours nationally and internationally (most recently: Blanc De Blanc in Las Vegas and Black Is The New White completing a second national tour) with productions regularly receiving national acclaim (most recently: Blackie Blackie Brown - 2019 Helpmann nomination for Best Play; and, Barbara and the Camp Dogs - 2019 Helpmann winner for Best Musical).

    In addition to theatre, he has composed and produced music for pop artists, cabaret and circus productions, and a number of large-scale/arena events and national celebrations.